Furnace-grate.



0,1. HUBER. FURNACE GRATE. APPLICATION mm FEB. l, 1915.

Patented Jul 1917,

K 1 mucus Tl- M n a t w Walkman (3.1 HUBER.

FURNACE GRATE. APPLICATION FlLEU FEB. I. l9l6.

1,232,687. Pa tented July 10, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- H I .M iii 1: I V 95 is A C. J. HUBER. FURNACE GRATE. APPLICATION FILED res. 1-. 1916.-

1,232,687. PatentedJuly 10, 1917.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3- I Zia/ks UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE."

CHARLES J. HUBER, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, ASSIGNOB T0 HUBER G BA'IE BAR & STOKIN G COMPANY, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, A QORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

FURNACEQGRATE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J IiIyTOIIQI '7? To all whom it may concern:

Be it known-that I, CHAnLEs J. HUBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bale timore, in the city of Baltimore and State of Maryland, have invented new and useful Improvements in Furnace-Grates, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to furnace grates, the object in view being to produce a grate of high efliciency by means of which the fuel may be fed along the grate surface while being consumed, at any rate of progress desired by the attendant so that a. uniform distribution of the fuel is insured. lhe construction and operation of the grate is such that the fire may be increased or allowed to diminish .in accordance with the heat required. Furthermore, the constructionand arrangement is such that the oscillatory grate sections hereinafter more particularly described only protrude into the fire or bed of coals momentarily thereby keeping the grate in a comparatively cool condition and avoiding to a considerable extent the tendency of the grate sections to warp and bind in their bearings. A further object of the invention is to provide in connection with an inclined series of os cillatory grate sections, manuallycontrolled levers and connections whereby groups of alternately arranged sections may be actuatcd, combined with means for arresting the movei'nent of each manually controlled leyer independently of the other and sustaining the fuel su 'iporting surfaces of the grate sections in a. common plane. Greater or less movement may be imparted to the grate sections as desired and they may be operated quickly or slowly in accordance with the necessity of advancing the fuel rapidly or slowly.

\Vith the above and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination andarrangement of parts,

as herein described, illustrated and claimed In the accompanying drawings Figure 1. is a vertical section through a furnace, showing the grate of this invention partly in side elevation and partly in section.

of grate sections tilted for advancing the coked fuel. v

. margin the supporgt Fig. 2 is a similar View showing one group Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the dump- 1ng grate section lowered.

Fig. 4c is an enlarged detail side elevation of one of the supporting bars.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical cross sect on on the line 55 of Fig. 1, on an enlarged scale.

Fig. Gis an enlarged plan view of one of the grate sections.

Fig. 7 is a rear elevation of the same.

Fig. 8 is an end elevation of one of the grate sections.

Fig. 9 is a vertical cross section on the line 99 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 10 is an end view of one grate section showing a fragment of the next grate section adj acent the lip, in cooperative relation thereto. I

Great difficulty has been experienced in producing a grate of such a construction as to insure the uniform feeding of the fuel along the grate surface at a-proper rate of progress, and also to enable the rapidity of feed of the fuel to be increased or diminished as required in accordance with conditions existing at any particular time. The grate hereinafter particularly described and illustrated in the drawings has been especially designed to overcome the objections referred to and which up to this time have been fatal to the practical efficiency of grates of the general type embodied in this application.

In carrying out the present invention, I employ any. suitable number of supporting bars one o lWlliCll is illustrated in side ele vation in ig. 4. Each supporting bar comprises a substantially vertical web-like body 1 of truss formation, said bar being pro-. vided at one end thereof with an attaching lug 2 and provided at the opposite end thereof with a. supporting lug 3. In its upper a longitudinal seiies of journal, receivin sockets 4- and 5 and it will be observed thet each of said sockets comprises a. wall 6 which oblique walls 6 of thesocket 5 inclining-in f the 0p itedirection r tower .wthe reqr wall the film, t fmng'lwan um in in I toward the front of the ful'haceya'nd the is substantially straight-and is inclined or o wall at 8.

Each of the supporting bars 1, as shown in Fig. 5, is providedat one side thereof with 5 a laterally projectin flange 9 which extends under the journals the grate sections hereinafter described and as shown in Fig. and overhangs the connecting rods by which the grate sections are oscillated. Where grate sections are arranged at both sides of a sup porting bar 1, the latter is provided with two of such flanges 9 as shown in. ig. 5 and these flanges, whether one or two are employed, follow the outline of the upper marginal edge of the body of the supporting bar including the journal receiving sockets 4: and 5.

The fuel supporting surface of the grate is made up of an inclined series of oscillatory grate sections 10, said series .sloping downwardly at a certain predetermined angle from the front toward the rear of the fur nace as clearly indicated in'Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Each of the grate sections is constructed as best illustrated in Figs. 6 to 9 inclusive, the same comprising a. series of parallel grate bars 11 which are connected intermediate their front and rearextremities by means of p a sgtringer barll and are further connected atheir front extremities by means of a guard wall 12. Each of the grate bars 11 is of the shape best illustrated in Fig. 9.,nthe bars 11 being of greater depth or vertical extent at the front than at the rear of, the grate section. The grate section is provided at its opposite extremities with projecting journals 13 and is also provided with bear- -'i ng shoulders or bosses 14 to prevent the operating ar ms hereinafter described from rubbing against the supporting bars 1 thus reducing friction to a minimum and enabling the'grate sections to be oscillated with comparative ease. At their forward extremities the grate bars 11 are rounded as shown at 140 so as to lie flush with the journalstlii. Each grate bar 11 thus comprises a curvilinear portion 140 and a rectilinear portion 15. This produces a clinker crushing projection at the rear extremity of the bar 11, the series of clinker crushing projections thus provided on each grate section serving i to break up the cinders during the oscillatory movements of the grate sections thus eliminating la'rgeclinkers formingunder the bed ofcoals. a I The guard wall 12 gradually decreases in thickness from top to bottom as shown in Fig. 9 and the outer surface 16 thereof together with the. adjacent' edges 17 ofthe grate bars 11 are described on an arc of a circle of which the axis of the'journals 13 is theccnter. Each grate section is also pro vided at one end only thereof with an operatin arm 18am]. a portion of the forward a edge of said arm 15 also described on the furnace being indicatedat 7 and the rearaforesaid are as shown at 19. The object in describing the parts referred to on the are above mentioned is to render-it possible to rock each grate bar section into-the position indicated in Fig. 2 where the fuel sup'poit ing top surfaces of certain grate sectionsare shown as approaching a vertical line, The shape and angular disposition of th e operating arm 18 of each grate section 10 are such that if necessary the fuel supporting top surface of said grate section may be carried. beyond a vertical line, this being rendered possible by 'extending the arm 18 obliquely A downward with respect to its grate section and terminatih said arm at a point inrear 39 of the body the grate section and at a point in rear of an imaginary vertical line passing through the'body of the next adjw cent grate section. This last named feature is clearly illustrated in Figs. 1, and 3 and 35 also in the detail sectional view, Fig. 9.

The guard wall 12 has its upper or top portion expanded in width oi. thickness to form a projecting latch 20 which as shown in Fig. 10 overhangs-the adjacent portion of the next grate bar 10, the object of this being to prevent coal from sifting downwardly between the grate sections which would be productive of considerable waste of fuel. The upper marginal portion of the guard wall 12 is concaved as at 21 on an arc of a circle of ,which the'a'xis of the journals 13 is the center. Therefore the clearance space between adjacent grate sections is u'nvarying and is sufficiently small to prevent waste of coal. This is due especially to the overhang ing arrangement of-the projecting ledge 20.

It will also be noted that the guardwall'12, doesnot extend downw ardly to the full depth of the rear portions of the grate bars 11 and therefore when the grate section is rocked upwardly td the position shown in Fig. 2, free draft will be allowed between the grate bars 11 and thus the draft is not interfered with by said guard wall. The stringer bar 11 and the grate bars 11. as well as the guard wall 12 gradually decreasein thickness from top to bottom thereby causing them. to easily clear themselves from adhering accumulations and also making the grate section as a whole easier to draw from the sand .of a

mold. At its extremity, each operatin arm 18 is preferably provided with an alfilll'lfll' bearing boss 22' which comes in contact. with the adjacent connecting rod 23 and thereby prevents the body of the arm 18 from rubbing against said connecting rod and pro-' ducing unnecessary friction.

A many series of oscillatory grate sections A may be employed as acquired by the width of the furnace and in connection with each series of such grate sections, I employ a pair of connecting rods "33 as clearly indicated in Fig. 5, the said connecting rods lying beneath and .being protected by the overhanging flanges 9 of the intervening supporting bar 1, which prevents theisiftings from the grate from falling upon the. connecting rods or bars 23 and the pivotal connections between said bars and the operating arms 18 of the adjacent grate sections. Each arm 18 is shown as connected to one of the rods or bars by means of a pivot 24 which is inserted through 10 a smooth hole in the arm 18 and'threar..le .l into an opening in the respective connecting rod 23 where it is fixedly held by means of a set screw 25 screwed into the rod 23 and binding against the threaded portion of the pivot 24. This prevents any possibility of the pivot 24 working loose and permitting the arm 18 to become disconnected from the rod "23. .It will be noted by reference to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 that one of the connecting 2o rods 23 is pivotally associated with one group of oscillatory grate sections, said group being composed of every other grate bar section. The other connecting rod is similarly associated with the remaining 25 grate bar sections.

Each of the connecting rods is actuated independently of the other by means of a manually operated lever designated generally at B and comprising a base sec-y tion) 26 and adctachable section 27. The

base or main section 26 is operatively connected with the respective connecting rod 23 by means of a telescopic coupling rod designated generally at C and comprising a tubular member 28 and a rod-like member 2 9 which is slidable in the member 28 and held at anydesired adjustment by means of a binding screw 30 carried by the mei'nber 28. The coupling rod (,1 is pivotally connected at 31 to the respective connecting rod.

23 and is pivotallyconnected at 32 to the I base section 26 of the lever B, said base section being shown as fulcrumed at 33 on an arm or bracket 34 fastened to the front wall of the furnace.

The section 26 of the lever B is formedfront wall of the furnace and performs the same function as the stop 36. 00 3 8 designates the dead plate or coking vplate at the front end of the inclined grate and just within the fuel door o ming 3!). '40 designates the dumping grate section the journals 41 of which are received in the sockets 5 of the supporting bar or bars. An

' operating colmection is pivotally attached to the dumping grate section -lll at 43 and extends through the front wall of the fur-' nace where it is provided with a suitable operating handle H.

From the foregoing description. taken in conl'lection with the accompanying drawings, it willnow be umlerstood that the oscillatory grate sections are arranged in a rearwardly sloping series and the journals thereof being mounted in the sockets l and 5, even should one or more of the grate sections become warped or overheated. the shape of the sockets 'l' and 5 will permit the journals of the grate sections to shift themselves in order to compensate for such warping of the grate sections without liability of any binding action, thus maintaining the grate sections in perfect working coi'ldition and relation to the supporting means there" for. The pivotal connection between the grate sections and the connecting rods 23 is protected by the overhanging flanges {lot the supporting bars 1 therebypreventing sittings from finding their way to the pivotal connections referred to and also ass t ing in keeping the working parts of the grate in good condition. On account of the grate sections being alternately connected to an operating lever, every other grate section may be rocked upwardly for feeding the fuel toward the rear: end of the grate and a slow movement may be imparted to the said grate sections by a corresponding increment of the lever by which said. sections are operated. Thegrate sectionsiare inthe fire or bed of coals only for a moment or during the operation of the respective lever B thereby attaining a distinct advantage ov'cr any eccentric-operating means which hasthe serious defect of keeping portions of the grate sections for too long a period in the bed of coals and thereby increasing the liability of warpage of the parts; 'lhefuel supporting surfaces of the grate sections are iliaintained in a common plane by means of their actuating levers and the stops above described. By reason of the special formation and arrangement of the operating arms 18 of the grate sections, the fuel supporting surfaces of said sections may be carried upwardly to and even beyond a vertical line so as to positively. insure the progressive movement of the fuel while at the same time bri-iaking up any crust or sheetdike rlinlwrs which may form above the grate.

Having thus described my invention, I claim 1. in a furnace grate, the combination with. supporting means, of a rcm-wardly sloping series o'f,oscillatory grate sections. each embodying a plurality grate bars, a stringer bar intersecting said grate bars between the front and rear extremities thereof, and a guard well also intersecting said.

grate bars at the extremities thereof, thelower portion of the outer face of said guard wall and the adjacent extremities of the grate bars being described on the arc of a circle of which the axis of movement of the grate section is the center, the upper portion of the outer face of the guard wall being concave on an arc of which the axis of the adjacent bar is the center.

2, In a furnace grate, the combination with supporting means, of a rearwardly sloping series of oscillatory grate sections each embodying a plurality of grate bars, a stringer bar intersecting said grate bars between the front and rear extremities thereof,

and a guard wall also intersecting saidgrate bars at the extremities thereof, the outer face of said guard wall and the adjacent extremities of the grate bars bein described on the arc of a circle of which the axis of movement of the grate section is the center, the upper marginal portion of the guard wall. being offset on its outer side to form a projecting ledge which overhangs the adacent portion of the next grate section.

3. In a furnace grate, the. combination with supporting .means, 'of a rearwardly sloping series of oscillatory grate sections each embodying a plurality of grate bars, a

stringer bar intersectingsaid grate bars between the front and rear extremities thereof, and a guard wall also intersecting said grate bars at the extremities thereof, the outer face of said guard wall and the adjacent extremities of the rate bars being described on the arc of a circle of which the axis of movement of the grate section is the center, the extremities-of said grate bars farthest from the uard-wall being partly curvilinear and part y rectilinear and forming clinker crushing pro ections.

4. In a furnace grate, the combination with a rearwardly sloping series of oscillatory grate sections having end journals, of a supporting bar therefor-embodying 'a' .sub-

" stantially vertical web-like body formed with hearing sockets for said journals, said sockets being open at the top and each partly defined by a wall which isoblique with re-' spect to the length of the supporting bar, one of said sockets having its oblique wall inclined in the opposite direction, and a dumping grate section having an end journal supported in the last named socket.

5. In a grate, the combination of'a phi-- ralit of oscillatory grate sections arranged in a utting relation and in 'an'inclinedse ries, each section comprising parallel grate bars having rounded extremities, a stringer bar intersecting said bars adjacent to the rounded extremities thereof and having a substantially flat side forming clinker crushing faces between the rounded extremities of said bars, a guard wall extending downwardly from the opposite extremities of said bars and described on an arc of which the aXiS of said section is the center, and

means connecting said sections in two separate sets, each comprising alternate sections" and manually controlled means for oscillating the sections of each set independently of the other set.

6.'In a grate, the combination of'a plurality of oscillatory grate sections arranged in abuttinorelation and in a series inclined downwardly and rearwardly, each section comprising a plurality of bars the cross-sections of the bars increasing in vertical width from the rear toward the front, the axis of each section being adjacent the rear ends of the bars of that section so that in oscillating the sections swing upward and backward toward the rear of the furnace, a guard wall extending downwardly over the forward extremitles of the said bars for the reater portion of the width of the bars and having the outside surface in the main de-' scribed on a substantially circular arc of which the axis of said section is the center, each section having a lever arm, and separate means connected to the alternate lever arms forming two separate sets, and manually operated means coiiperating with said means to oscillate the sections of each set independently of the other set.

7. A grate section for'stokin sisting of a plurality of 'grate grates core are, a pivot 'at each end of the section transverse to the bars, the pivots being in alinement with each other ltnd, with the rear ends of the bars, 'meansconnecting the ends of the bars in alinement with the pivots, each bar being of a width measured in a'plane at right angles to the pivots increasing from the pivot toward the swinging ends of the rate bars, a guard wall connecting the en s of the grate bars remote from the pivots and extending downward for a considerable portion of the width of the saidends of the T bars an almost equal portion of the ends.

of the grate bars being uncovered, substantially the entire outer surface of the guard wall and the surfaces offlthe. adjacent ends of the grate bars being formed on a circular- '11! arc concentric with the pivots, and a lever arm at' right angl s to. the pivot. i g

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature iii presence of two witnesses. I s CHARLES J Vitnesses LINWOOD L. CLARK,

Sauna E. REISIG. 

